Enrichment of common variant associations was restricted to genes expressed in CNS neurons, both excitatory and inhibitory, and fundamental biological processes related to neuronal function. This points to neurons as the most important site of pathology in the disorder. We also show that genes with high relative specificity for expression in almost all tested brain regions are enriched for genetic association. This suggests that abnormal neuronal function in schizophrenia is not confined to a small number of brain structures, which in turn might explain its diverse psychopathology, association with a broad range of cognitive impairments, and lack of regional specificity in neuroimaging measures1.
